Chapter Summaries

Ronan met Cat's Eye at the Luxury Suite, where her teasing closeness stirred an intense, dangerous restlessness in him that he struggled to control. As Xie Junping arrived and found Ronan and Cat's Eye pressed close together, more visitors followed and the private room erupted into commotion.

• Ronan met Cat's Eye, who greeted him provocatively as her Master and looped her arm through his.
• Ronan's restless emotions surged until he nearly disrupted the Life Starry Sky and the Life Sketches of his connected believers, but he managed to suppress the disturbance.
• Ronan told Cat's Eye to call him Boss and sent her into the private room, where she began chatting with Xue Lei.
• Ronan joined Cat's Eye and Xue Lei; after Cat's Eye whispered that alcohol could serve as an excuse to take advantage of her, Ronan leaned close and brushed her hair and forehead.
• Xie Junping entered with Hu Huaying, followed by Mo Han, and they caught Ronan and Cat's Eye sitting close together as Xue Lei spilled his drink.

Ronan tried to smooth over the awkward moment when his friends walked in on him and Cat's Eye, then hosted the crowded gathering as everyone exchanged uneasy introductions. The conversation ended with Du Yong revealing that he and Xie Junping had met someone who claimed a Magic Array could help people cross an awakening threshold.

• Ronan and Cat's Eye separated as Xie Junping, Mo Peng, Mo Han, and the others crowded into the Luxury Suite, and the group helped redirect attention from their intimate moment.
• Ronan drank a glass of cask-strength whisky, and his Mouth and Tongue Apertures and Jade Liquid in the Spirit Pool dulled its harsh effects.
• Ronan introduced the guests, and Cat's Eye unsettled Tian Si by hinting that she knew about Tian Si's connection to someone.
• Mo Peng and Mo Han teased Ronan about older women and a possible mother complex, prompting Paper Cut and Xie Junping to choke on their drinks.
• Paper Cut steered the young guests toward talk of mysticism, but Du Yong revealed that he and Xie Junping had met someone who offered to guide them through an awakening threshold with a Magic Array.

Du Yong vented about a failed Magic Array project and showed Ronan and Paper Cut its projected design. The array appeared to be an entrance test for spirit awakening, and Paper Cut revealed it was connected to Creation, the Creator.

• Du Yong complained that the Magic Array design had been lost when the file initialized, despite his repeated attempts to verify it.
• Xie Junping explained that the wristband could only read the unsupported file format and that the design had failed verification anyway.
• Ronan studied the projected array and connected it to a previous Magic Array incident involving the Justice Cult.
• Paper Cut said projected Magic Arrays had become widespread and suggested the array's adaptive adjustments served as an entrance exam for spirit awakening.
• Ronan noted that no cult had used that approach before, and Paper Cut linked the technique to Creation, the Creator.

Ronan and Paper Cut examined the Creation Order's Magic Array and Ronan began investigating how Soul Power or interference force might give it a sense of material reality. Outside, a fight erupted between Yue Zheng, Mo Peng, and Ju Maoxun, ending with Qiu Peipei struck in the head by a thrown cup.

• Paper Cut told Ronan that the Creation Order had no record in the Database, and Xie Junping identified its mentor as Dean Wan, who worked at a welfare institute in Linqiang District.
• Ronan shared Du Yong's Magic Array file with He Yueyin, Paper Cut, Xue Lei, and Cat's Eye, then opened it for everyone to modify.
• Ronan observed that the Magic Array lacked a sense of material reality and considered whether Soul Power or interference force could supply it.
• Tian Si and Hu Huaying led the young visitors toward a VIP room, but Mo Peng accidentally opened the door into Yue Zheng, who fell into the room.
• Yue Zheng and Mo Peng fought, and Yue Zheng knocked Ju Maoxun down onto a fruit drink, leaving Ju Maoxun bleeding and covered in juice.
• Ju Maoxun hurled a large fruit juice cup at the crowd, striking Qiu Peipei in the head and making her bleed.

After a dispute at Frost River Reality sent Qiu Peipei to the hospital, the police began taking statements while the people involved and their allies assessed the fallout. Ronan sensed two Burners at Long Willow Pavilion, including a suspected B+-rank powerhouse, and alerted his companions.

• Qiu Peipei was taken to the hospital, while Mo Peng, Xue Lei, Yue Zheng, and Ju Maoxun faced police questioning over the fight.
• Yue Qin arrived with Turner's guardian authorization and declared that the Yue family wanted mediation, while Yue Zheng remained stunned.
• Ju Maoxun learned that Ju Ling had disappeared upstairs, then vomited from the internal injuries caused by Xue Lei's punch.
• Xie Junping, Hu Huaying, and Tian Si helped handle the police, while Ronan used Life Starry Sky perception to search for Ju Ling.
• Ronan detected two Burners at Long Willow Pavilion, identified one as a suspected B+-rank powerhouse, and shared their location with his companions.

Ronan and Paper Cut investigated the possibility that a powerful Burner had entered Xia City while tensions over the incident at Frost River Reality continued. When Yin Le arrived, Ronan sensed that the concealed B+ Burner had targeted her.

• Paper Cut told Ronan that B+ Burners could hold military ranks and suspected the man near Xia City might be Tian Bang, while Ronan failed to reach He Yueyin and left her a message.
• Ronan and Paper Cut discussed how Ability Users dealt with secular rules, and Cat's Eye identified groups seeking separation or dominance as the Superior Humans faction.
• Xie Junping reported that Ju Ling was a lieutenant colonel and a Burner in the Sea Defense Forces, leading Ronan and Paper Cut to suspect he was the powerful man they had noticed.
• Chen Weican arrived at Frost River Reality and began discussing the incident with Xie Junping while Ronan sensed a familiar person approaching.
• Yin Le entered the private room, and Ronan realized that a concealed B+ Burner at Long Willow Pavilion had locked onto her.

Ronan discovered that a B+ Burners was using Chen Weican to lure Yin Le and hunt the Human-Faced Spider, so he ordered the Demon Rune to retreat deeper into the Mental Layer. He abandoned the idea of exploiting the trap to retrieve the Demon Rune and left the gathering with his companions, disrupting the private room’s standoff.

• Ronan realized that the B+ Burners was tracking the Human-Faced Spider and suspected someone inside the Blood Flame Order had leaked that Yin Le had taken charge of it.
• Ronan ordered the Demon Rune to dive deeper into the Mental Layer, delaying the hunter’s attempt to locate it and protecting Yin Le from immediate suspicion.
• Ronan reconsidered trying to use the trap to retrieve the Demon Rune and chose to leave with Paper Cut, Cat's Eye, Xue Lei, and the others.
• Yin Le and Chen Weican noticed Ronan departing, and Xie Junping asked where he was going.
• Ronan said he was going home, prompting his companions and then Hu Huaying, Mo Peng, and Robbio to leave as well, collapsing the gathering’s standoff.

Ronan led his group away from the private room and realized a military-backed operation was closing in around the Human-Faced Spider. As Xia City launched a search-and-capture operation and Ju Ling followed them, Ronan prepared to probe the man through Paper Cut.

• Ronan rejected Chen Weican's attempt to keep him and left with the others, while Tian Si ignored Chen Weican and followed Ronan out.
• Tian Si told Ronan she would resign from her Mutual Aid Society position, and Ronan asked Paper Cut to collect Mo Han and the others from the hospital.
• Ronan sensed a B+ class Burner searching near the group and brought the Demon Rune out of the Extreme Domain, which eased Yin Le's unease.
• The group encountered Ju Ling, whom Xie Junping identified as Ju Maoxun's cousin, as He Yueyin reported a government and military operation to search for a Human-Faced Spider clone near Cloud Capital Shuiyi.
• Ronan suspected the operation was aimed at forcing the group to register or leave, then Paper Cut recognized Ju Ling and cheerfully grabbed him.

Ronan and the association members encountered Ju Ling during the military’s search for Human-Faced Spiders, and Cat's Eye negotiated to join the operation in exchange for access to a remote guidance platform. As the group headed home, Ronan focused on the Demon Rune and Format Theory while Cat's Eye offered to help him.

• Ronan and the others met Ju Ling at the hospital, where he explained that Ability Users had to undergo military clearance checks for the Human-Faced Spider search.
• Ronan passed the military’s scan and recognized that Tian Bang was using Spirit Fire Smoke to provoke any Human-Faced Spider nearby.
• Ronan declined to participate in the operation, but Cat's Eye negotiated to stay as auxiliary personnel if she could obtain a remote guidance platform.
• The group reunited with Mo Peng and Qiu Peipei, then left in a business van while Ronan considered the Demon Rune and his plans for Format Theory.
• Cat's Eye questioned whether Format Theory was truly Ronan’s pursuit and privately offered him help.

Ronan and Cat's Eye coordinated from the Command Center as the military investigated Yin Le, while Tian Bang questioned Cat's Eye about whether Ronan had sensed the Human-Faced Spider. As Yin Le prepared to act, Ronan overheard Madam Harold order her through the Demon Rune to release it at once.

• Cat's Eye confronted Ronan about his connection to the Human-Faced Spider, and he realized he might not truly want to let her go.
• He Yueyin gave Cat's Eye temporary authority as the Association's chief liaison, and Cat's Eye joined Ju Ling at the Frontline Command Center.
• Tian Bang arrived, and Ronan learned that the young general had undergone mechanical modifications since childhood before Burner technology existed.
• Tian Bang questioned Cat's Eye about Ronan's psychic ability and then ordered Ju Ling to invite Yin Le to register her access permissions rather than arrest her immediately.
• Yin Le abruptly entered a restroom and splashed water on her face as the Command Center watched, while Ronan listened to Madam Harold order her through the Demon Rune to release it at once.

Yin Le secretly released the Demon Rune from her control, while the military’s operation against the Blood Flame Order found no evidence and shifted toward a wider confrontation. Ronan decided to retrieve the Demon Rune and devised a plan to hide it in the swamp forest at Zhi Xing Institute, leaving the details to be worked out later.

• Morun and Madam Harold ordered Yin Le to release the Demon Rune while preserving the Blood Flame Order’s ability to summon it back.
• Yin Le gave the Demon Rune a restraint command and severed her direct connection to it, while Ronan watched and chose not to retrieve it immediately.
• Yin Le passed the military’s examination without detection, and Tian Bang ordered plan B as she left with her party.
• He Yueyin warned that the conflict could involve Tian Bang’s personal will and advised Cat's Eye to withdraw from the dispute.
• Ronan resolved to retrieve the Demon Rune and keep it hidden, then marked the swamp forest at Zhi Xing Institute as the centerpiece of his plan.

Ronan nervously prepared to act on his plan, then used his Life Starry Sky anchors to observe Cat's Eye and Tian Bang at the Frontline Command Center. Tian Bang exposed the Association's Shared Perspective and boldly called out to He Yueyin, while Ronan reflected on his own lack of candor.

• Ronan returned home with Mo Peng, escaped upstairs, and prepared for bed as Luo Shuqing scolded Mo Peng about drinking.
• Ronan showered and refined his plan for Da Huo Sheng District, noticing that his dream seemed to have improved the details in his mental drawing.
• Ronan projected his consciousness through the Human-Faced Spider and Cat's Eye anchors and watched Cat's Eye meet Tian Bang in the Aurora Cloud Capital lounge.
• Tian Bang discussed preserving perception, thought, and emotion during human modification, then revealed that he knew the Association was watching through Shared Perspective.
• Tian Bang shouted a drunken invitation to He Yueyin, prompting Cat's Eye to laugh and tease Ronan about someone stealing his secretary.
• Ronan watched the exchange and wondered whether he was truly candid with others.

Ronan confronted his possessiveness and envy, then used his consciousness and the Human-Faced Spider to launch an attack on a confirmed target in Aurora Cloud Capital. The attack breached the inner defenses, and the target disappeared as Tian Bang’s forces made contact.

• Ronan admitted that he was possessive and jealous, then extended his perception across Aurora Cloud Capital through Cat's Eye and the Human-Faced Spider.
• Ronan recognized the reach of his abilities and unleashed the Human-Faced Spider against the target he had confirmed.
• At the Frontline Command Center, Tian Bang and Cat's Eye learned that Bait No. 4 had been attacked and the southwestern inner defensive line breached.
• Cat's Eye switched the mission feed to radar data, while Xue Lei and Paper Cut struggled to interpret the readings and identify Bait No. 4.
• A sharp spike appeared on the wavelength graph as No. 1 made contact with the target in the Shallow Belt, which then disappeared; Tian Bang's wineglass shattered in his hand.

Tian Bang and the command center struggled to understand a Human-Faced Spider that could vanish and reappear within the Mental Layer. Ronan revealed that he had used the distorted Mental Layer to mislead Tian Bang and continued moving the Demon Rune around Aurora Cloud Capital to draw out hidden Trump Cards.

• Tian Bang explained that the Human-Faced Spider had escaped its trap and evaded his pursuit with movement that resembled teleportation.
• He Yueyin explained that the center lacked continuous detection data because the creature kept jumping between locations.
• Tian Bang described invisible folds in the Mental Layer that seemed to conceal the Human-Faced Spider, and He Yueyin concluded that it was exploiting terrain there.
• Ronan revealed that he had used the Human-Faced Spider's distortion of the Mental Layer to weave a maze and lead Tian Bang in circles.
• Ronan continued moving the Demon Rune around Aurora Cloud Capital to make Tian Bang and the Blood Flame Order reveal their hidden Trump Cards.
• A chant abruptly rose.

Ronan traced the Blood Flame Order’s chant to a gathering of its core members while the order tried to understand the military’s operation around the Human-Faced Spider. Madam Harold concluded that Ren Hong had defected to another Blood Flame branch because it could offer what their branch could not.

• Ronan followed the chant through the Demon Rune and identified a target near Cloud Capital Shuiyi.
• Paper Cut learned from He Yueyin that the Human-Faced Spider was nearing its complete form, and Cat's Eye questioned the source of the intelligence.
• At a private room in He Wu District, Madam Harold and the Blood Flame Order’s leaders reviewed intelligence showing Deep Blue Walkers searching for the Human-Faced Spider.
• Madam Harold argued that the military wanted the Blood Soul Temple and its effects, not merely the Human-Faced Spider, and linked that interest to the Blood Flame lineage.
• Madam Harold named Ren Hong as a traitor and reasoned that he had joined another branch because their group had four shepherds while he would be the only one there.

Ronan and the Control School confronted Ren Hong, who revealed his goal of witnessing the perfect Blood Flame Will, while Demon Rune attacked him in the Underground Parking Lot. Ren Hong invoked the Blood Soul Temple to restrain Demon Rune, and Ronan sensed its influence growing within his Closed System.

• Tian Bang contacted Ren Hong publicly, and Ren Hong said he wanted to verify the Blood Flame Will rather than serve the Control School.
• He Yueyin explained that the Control School had deep ties to the military, while the mission team debated the factions’ motives.
• Ronan directed Demon Rune to attack Ren Hong, and Tian Bang rushed toward the Underground Parking Lot after Ren Hong sounded the alarm.
• The Deep Blue Walkers raised Format Fire, but Demon Rune used Siege Hammer to incapacitate one of them and break the formation.
• Ren Hong crushed his stone talisman and invoked the Blood Soul Temple, whose runes restrained Demon Rune as Ronan sensed its influence spreading through his Closed System.

Ronan isolated the Blood Soul Temple’s corruption within the Demon Rune while tracing its connections to Ren Hong and the Xia City Blood Flame Order. As Madam Harold’s group decided to abandon Xia City, Morun proposed taking a gamble.

• Ren Hong used the talisman’s Curse Power and believers’ Thought Power to strengthen the Blood Soul Temple, which began assimilating the Demon Rune.
• Ronan severed the Demon Rune’s links to the other believers, containing the Blood Soul Temple’s spreading contamination within the Demon Rune.
• Ronan traced the Blood Soul Temple’s spiritual connections to Ren Hong, Tian Bang, and Madam Harold’s Blood Flame Order branch.
• Yin Le offered to cut off the Thought Power channel, but Madam Harold warned that doing so would destroy the cult’s foundation.
• Madam Harold urged the group to leave Xia City to preserve the Blood Flame Order, and Morun agreed that they could not win a direct confrontation.
• Morun began outlining a plan and said he would take a gamble.

Madam Harold and the Blood Flame Order prepared to evacuate as Ren Hong forced the transfer of the Shepherd’s priority, while Morun secretly left his cryogenic chamber. Morun infiltrated the building and reached the underground levels, where Ren Hong continued his ritual and Deep Blue Walkers closed in.

• Morun urged the Order to turn its remaining equity into a wager, then agreed to the evacuation despite being unable to move until his body was thawed.
• Surveillance showed Ren Hong forcing the Blood Soul Temple’s transfer of priority, prompting Yin Le to warn that he could claim it within twenty minutes.
• Madam Harold made Morun’s Black Smoke Soul Body vanish, and Morun’s empty cryogenic chamber was discovered after he escaped with his physical body.
• Ren Hong continued draining believers’ Thought Power to advance the ritual as Tian Bang spotted Morun arriving by taxi and the command center activated its Black Soul contingency plan.
• Morun evaded the search teams by descending through a hole in the parking levels, then reached the Sixth Floor Underground as Ren Hong concentrated on the ritual and Deep Blue Walker engines roared nearby.

Morun confronted Tian Bang in the Underground Parking Lot, then unleashed his Black Soul Body as Meng Tu’s Deep Blue Walker Squads attacked with coordinated Format Fire. The parking structure suddenly collapsed across the fifth and sixth floors, burying the combatants in rubble and leaving their fate unclear.

• Morun and Tian Bang debated the Control School, the old split, and Morun’s efforts to pursue a new path while the Deep Blue Walker Squads sealed off the parking lot.
• Morun spread a storm of black mist across the fifth floor and vanished, prompting Meng Tu to direct an attack from the sixth floor.
• Meng Tu and more than ten Burners coordinated their Format Fire through a Format Cannon, engulfing the area where Yin Yang Eye had located Morun.
• The Format Fire formed a domain that threatened Ability Users, while Ronan recognized its reach through the Mental Layer and resolved to beware of it.
• Tian Bang and Meng Tu noticed the fifth-floor slab cracking beyond the attack zone, and the fifth and sixth floors collapsed beneath the Deep Blue Walker Squads.

Morun and Tian Bang fought amid the collapse of the underground parking levels while Ren Hong struggled to complete the Blood Soul Temple’s transformation. As destruction spread through Cloud Capital Shuiyi, Tian Bang noticed Morun’s Black Soul Body was consuming his flesh and challenged him over the cost of continuing the fight.

• The falling parking level buried the teams, but Fourth Team protected Ren Hong, and two members collapsed after using Thunder Fire.
• Tian Bang moved to defend Ren Hong, but Morun appeared behind him and the two B+ powerhouses clashed, scattering debris and injuring more Deep Blue Walkers.
• Ren Hong gathered the believers’ Thought Power as the Blood Soul Temple neared its transformation, while Ronan watched the struggle from the system perspective.
• Morun brought down another mass of steel and vehicles, prompting the government security chief to warn Tian Bang that the battle threatened Cloud Capital Shuiyi and its residents.
• Morun and Tian Bang traded taunts while probing each other, and Tian Bang said Morun had lost 2.2 kilograms because his Black Soul Body was consuming his flesh.